Self-help fights childhood obesity: UCSD study

San Diego  Overweight children and their parents can shed extra pounds on their own, if they get guidance from medical experts, according to a new study led by UC San Diego researchers.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, indicates that self-help programs may be realistic ways to reduce childhood obesity. Kerri Boutelle, an associate professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at UCSD School of Medicine, led the study. This is the first study to indicate such a guided self-help program is effective, according to a UCSD press release on the study.

The study examined 50 overweight or obese children between the ages of 8 and 12 and their family member. They were enrolled in what was described as "low-intensity" treatment for five months. The children's BMI was measured immediately after the treatment ended and six months later. Their BMI was significantly reduced after the treatment and remained significantly lower at the sixth-month followup.

"Parents and their children are given a manual, and each week they read a chapter and try to apply the skills at home," Boutelle said in the press release. "Every other week they come in to our clinic at UC San Diego School of Medicine for 20 minutes and discuss how things were going with an interventionist."

Those interested can email kidsweight@ucsd.edu, call 855-827-3498 or visit the Center for Healthy Eating and Activity Research (CHEAR) Web site at obesitytreatment.ucsd.edu.